When we treat play as seriously as it deserves, we feel the joy that’s in the creative spirit. It’s the things we play with and the people who help us play that make a difference in our lives. -Fred Rogers- This week, I had the honor of opening the K12 Online Conference on Purposeful Play with the following question: WHEN IS THE LAST TIME YOU PLAYED ON PURPOSE?  Image via Wikipedia This is an important question to ask ourselves amidst the hustle and bussle of our busy work and lives.  My bet is that if I asked you to close your eyes and think of the happiest moments in your life ; chances are (whether this moment was as a child or an adult) it involved some sort of play Play is the most natural thing that children do and yet somewhere along the way, we lose this inclination to play.  We get serious.  We’ve got more important things to do.  We’ve got to be productive.  We’re supposed to be successful.  Meanwhile, we become stressed, anxious, depressed, worried, and exhausted. Why? My guess is we are a little or a lot  "play-deprived". We have not given ourselves permission to play enough.  I understand, many of you are thinking "playing" seems childish, unprofessional, wasteful of our time and energies…am I right?   Let me encourage you to SERIOUSLY  rethink that and do as the wise Mr Rogers said, treat play with the seriousness it deserves. Play isn’t a luxury - it’s a necessity. Dr. Stuart Brown brilliantly demonstrates this in his TED talk making the scientific case that play is anything but frivolous and not just for kids. My favorite line: "The opposite of play is not work, it is depression." Charles Schaefer, founder of the Association for Play Therapy says the following about play: We are never more fully alive, more completely ourselves, or more deeply engrossed in anything than when we are playing. Through play our whole being is engaged—our bodies, minds, and souls.  Play allows us to express ourselves and connect most deeply with the best in others, thereby improving relationships. Who doesn’t’ deserve to feel more alive, to laugh, to reconnect and deepen our engagement with the world?  And if you are not going to give yourself permission to play more this week, I will. Consider this your official permission slip to explore, experiment, wander, wonder, tinker, get silly, discover, fiddle and in the process have extraordinary amounts of fun!! What are you waiting for??? YOUR SANDBOX IS WAITING!!! Image Credit: by PlayCrane Related articles What Ever Happened To Play? Lessons from the Sandbox The K12 Online Conference - Keynote Today Cultivating Play and Rest The Sandbox Manifesto: Life,Learning and Success on the Social Web Stuart Brown on The Significance of Play Want More Joy In Your Life? Play! ‘Tis the season for personalized professional development - on your own terms "Purposeful Play" - theme of K-12 Online Conference

Welcome to an interview with Miguel Salinas, who has helped develop the Adobe Youth Voices program, dedicated to encouraging creativity and self-expression using high-impact media. Awards for this year will be announced on May 4: http://youthvoices.adobe.com/awards/. The program, sponsored by MTV, Dell, and Samsung, as well as Adobe, allows students, teachers, and communities develop creativity

Each day I am inspired and motivated by so many talented, passionate leaders in our community. I would like to acknowledge and give special things to the following individuals for all they have contributed and the impact they have had on so many. My 2011 Edublog Award Nominations: Best group blog: The Connected Principals Best new blog Mrs. Krebs Class Blog Best individual blog  Langwitches Silvia Tolisana Best ed tech / resource sharing blog Free Technology for Teachers Most influential blog post  Five Ways to Tell Students They Matter Best twitter hashtag #YOUMATTER Best Student Blog: You Matter Young Leaders Blog Best teacher blog: CoolCat Teacher  Best Social Network: Classroom 2.0 Ning  Best librarian / library blog:  Shannon Miller- VanMeter Voice Best educational use of audio / video / visual / podcast:  TeacherCast Best educational wiki:  Cybraryman Best open PD / unconference / webinar series:  Wes Fryer- K12 Online Conference Lifetime achievement:  Steve Hargadon  

As mobile applications begin to be an integral part of elearning solutions, it is increasingly important to have a robust, flexible, and easy to use content management system (CMS). Not only will your CMS support the widest possible range of content types, including documents, audio, video, animation, multimedia, and web pages, it should also integrate well with other servers, databases, and

I love helping learners think more critically and creatively — teaching students strategies and techniques to fuel their imaginations, sustain their passionate curiosities, and challenge them to persevere as they problem solve through difficult tasks and content. This week, I will be taking these Habitude-building conversations to the business world. I will be sharing with small business leaders one of my favorite strategies called SCAMPER.  SCAMPER was originally created by Bob Earle and popularized by Michael Michalko in his excellent book, Thinkertoys. to strengthen an individual or an organizations ability to question, imagine and adapt.  See why it is one of my favorites? SCAMPER requires us to consider what we can: S - Substitute - components, materials, people C - Combine - mix, combine with other assemblies or services, integrate A - Adapt - alter, change function, use part of another element M - Mix, Modify - increase or reduce in scale, change shape, modify attributes P - Put to another use E - Erase/Eliminate - remove elements, simplify, reduce to core functionality R - RePurpose/ReverseReUse - turn inside out or upside down. SCAMPERing can add fluency, flexibility, originality ,and "Ummmph" to any idea or project. It is a powerful and easy way to stay motivated, relevant, and excited about what we do! I am excited for the conversations to come. Consider what SCAMPER can do for you? SCAMPER View more presentations from Angela Maiers. Related articles Creative Thinkering (consultkeith.com) Stimulate Creativity with the SCAMPER Mnemonic [Brain Hack] (lifehacker.com) To Be or Not to Be…Creative (800ceoread.com) Get creative ideas in 5 minutes. [John Brooker] (ecademy.com) You: Concentrate, Then Stop Thinking to Generate More Creative Insights [Brain Hack] (lifehacker.com) Think Visual: A challenge to stretch your imagination (mindmappingsoftwareblog.com)

Welcome to an interview with Sameer Bhatia, founder of ProProfs, innovators in interactive elearning elements which are used in mlearning and elearning, with degrees, including online teaching degrees.  1. What is your name and your relation to elearning? I am Sameer Bhatia, the founder of ProProfs. ProProfs provides comprehensive elearning tools for building, testing and applying knowledge

The nominations are in and voting has now begun for the 2011 Edublog Awards. This is a not only a gesture of support for the individuals who have contributed to our community; it is a great place to discover new voices, talent, and resources among the list of  blogs/bloggers nominated. I want to extend a special thanks to all those who nominated this blog. I am honored and humbled to announce my nominations in the following six categories.  If you have a moment I would so appreciate your vote for any or all of the following:  Best Individual Blog 2011           Best Use of Audio/Video/Podcast- Angela Maiers YouTube Channel   Most Influential Blog Post -  YOU MATTER: 2 Words Changing the World           Best Individual Tweeter     Best Twitter Hashtag: #YouMatter         Lifetime Achievement 2011           There are lots of incredibly well qualified candidates out there, so please take time to vote. Voting will be open until December 13th.  All you need to do to vote is visit the voting page, select a category and select your favorite blog. And you can vote once a day! "Win or lose", I am truly honored and blessed to have the opportunity to be in this incredible community of passionate educators. Thank you for all you do! #YOUMATTER Good luck to my nominees, and to everyone else who is on the ballot!.

Welcome to an interview with Paige Johnson, Intel Corporation, on Project RED, a research-based method to bring technology into the new "smart" schools.   1.       What is your name and your relation to elearning? My name is Paige Johnson and I am the education strategist for Intel Corporation. Intel gets directly involved in education programs, political advocacy and technology access

Please mark your calendars and adjust your schedules to the presenters, participants, and organizers of the 2011 K-12 Online Conference in an "AfterGlow" Closing Live Event on Monday, December 12th at 6:00pm PT / 7:00pm MT / 8:00pm CT / 9:00pm ET. The Afterglow" is a fun, celebratory event held in Blackboard Collaborate. It will provide opportunities for presenters to share the stories behind their presentations as well as give participants a chance to ask questions of the presenters. The Blackboard Collaborate session lin is: http://tinyurl.com/cr20live. (This link may be shared with others on Twitter, Plurk, blogs, etc. Please cross-post this information on your own blog, if possible, so we can amplify this live event and draw a big crowd of educators!) In addition to joining our upcoming live event, we invite you to check out and comment on a special "backstories of the 2011 K-12 Online Conference" Voicethread. Several of our presenters have already chimed in. Please add your voice and commentary! In case you missed it:  The K12 Online Conference Keynote: The Sandbox Manifesto Related Slides: The Sandbox Manifesto: Life, Learning and Success on the Social Web Related Presentations: Permission to Play Please Related articles Lessons from the Sandbox ‘Tis the season for personalized professional development - on your own terms K12 Online Conference Reflections- Week 1

Mobile learning via smartphone has been a possibility for learners since the earliest smartphones (T-Mobile Sidekick was an early example), but the the recent explosion in apps, access, and the essential ubiquity of mobile devices, there is a growing demand for instructional content that meshes with the learner's lifestyle and learning habits. In a smartphone world, developers can no longer